Reinstalling the Operating System

What a reinstall does

Reinstall replaces your server's disk with a fresh copy of the operating system you choose, on the same server: the same name, the same vCPU, memory and disk size, and the same IPv4 and IPv6 addresses. It is the right tool when the system is beyond repair, when you want to switch operating system, or when you want to start clean.

Everything on the disk is erased. Files, databases, installed software, users and configuration are all gone. Snapshots were taken of the old disk and do not survive the reinstall; delete any that remain listed. This cannot be undone.

Before you start

1. Copy off anything you need. Download it, rsync it to another machine, or push it to object storage. A snapshot is not a backup for this purpose, because the reinstall removes it.
2. Automated backups are kept. If you have Automated Backups enabled, the copies already taken live on our separate backup storage and remain listed on the server page after the reinstall. See Backups.
3. Check your SSH keys. The reinstall installs the keys that are on your account now, under Settings, SSH Keys, not the keys you chose when you first ordered. Add a key first if you want to log in with it.
4. Note anything you will need to redo: DNS records pointing at the server are unaffected, but firewall configuration inside the operating system, cron jobs and application configuration are not carried over.

The steps

1. Open Compute and select the server.
2. Click Stop and wait for the state to show stopped. Reinstall is only offered on a stopped server.
3. Click More, then Reinstall.
4. Choose the operating system from the list and click Reinstall. Confirm the warning.
5. Wait while the dashboard rebuilds the server; keep the page open. When the dashboard confirms the reinstall, the server is already back at Running.

Logging in afterwards

• If your account has at least one SSH key, those keys are installed and password login over SSH is off. Log in with your key as before.
• If your account has no SSH keys, or you chose a Windows image, a new password is generated for the username shown on the Initial Password card (root on Linux, Administrator on Windows). Click View Initial Password to see it; it is not sent by email. Any password from before the reinstall no longer applies and is no longer shown.
• Your SSH client will warn that the server's host key has changed, because the new system generated new host keys. Remove the old entry and connect again:

ssh-keygen -R 203.0.113.10

What is kept and what is not

| | After a reinstall | |---|---| | IPv4 and IPv6 addresses | Kept and configured on the new system | | Reverse DNS | Kept | | Server name, plan, disk size | Kept | | Edge Firewall rules | Kept; they apply at the network edge, not on the server | | Automated backups already taken | Kept on backup storage | | Snapshots | Do not survive; delete any still listed | | Files, software, users, configuration | Removed | | Firewall inside the operating system | Removed with the old system; rebuild it | | SSH keys | Replaced by the keys on your account at the time of reinstall | | Password | Replaced; only shown if the server was built without a key |

A reinstall does not change the plan. To change vCPU, memory or disk, use Resize.

Self-managed servers

Your server is self-managed: the operating system, the software you install and the configuration inside the server are yours to look after, and as a matter of policy we do not log in to customer servers. If a reinstall fails with an error, or the server does not return to Running, open a support ticket with the server name and the time you started it.